The retro edit
Getting back into retro games after years away
Most people who come back to retro games have not played in ten or twenty years. They remember particular games, a particular sofa or a long car journey, and they want some of that back. Returning is easy, but a few things are different the second time, and knowing them makes the first week much more fun.
Start with where you played
Your memories are the best guide to the right console. Think less about the games for a moment and more about how you played them.
If you remember a TV, a brother or sister with the second controller and arguments about whose turn it was, start with a TV console. The Game Stick Lite 4K covers the arcade, 8-bit and 16-bit years, and the G99 reaches up to the N64 and PSP.
If you remember playing under the covers or in the back seat, start with a handheld. The Trimui Brick is the closest in spirit to the pocket consoles of the nineties, and the R36S holds upright in the same way at a lower price.
Pick five games, not five hundred
A library of thousands is exciting for an evening and overwhelming after that. People who stay with it tend to do the same thing: write down five games they genuinely remember, find those first and add them to favourites. Explore the rest later, a system at a time.
The games are harder than you remember
Classic games were made to last. With few levels and no internet guides, designers made them difficult so you would play them for months. Coming back as an adult with less free time, that difficulty can feel unfair.
Use saves without guilt. The consoles we sell let you save partway through a game, and saving before a hard section means an evening is not lost to one jump. Your ten-year-old self would have done the same if they could.
The picture looks sharper than you remember
You played these games on tube televisions, which softened the image and blended the pixels. On a modern screen, the same game looks crisper and blockier. Neither is wrong. Many consoles like ours include display options that imitate the lines and softness of an old TV, and it is worth trying them to see which you prefer.
Your hands will remember
The first few minutes feel awkward, then something comes back. Combinations, shortcuts, where the secret block was. It is one of the stranger pleasures of returning, and it usually happens by the end of the first evening.
Share it
The best part of coming back is often playing with someone who was not there the first time: a partner, a friend or your own children. Explaining a game you loved is a good way to fall for it again. Our guide to retro games with kids has ideas for making that work.
If you are still deciding what to buy, the best console for each kind of retro game matches the consoles to the games you loved, and our buying guide covers all nine.
